My Migraine Story: A look at how Migraine has impacted my life and career choices – it’s not all bad news!

Megan Oltman, a migraine management coach, has volunteered to keep The Daily Headache running while I’m on vacation. Be sure to check out her blog, Free My Brain From Migraine Pain for more thoughts, tips and techniques on managing life with migraine. -Kerrie

Megan Oltman, a migraine management coach, has volunteered to keep The Daily Headache running while I’m on vacation. Be sure to check out her blog, Free My Brain From Migraine Pain for more thoughts, tips and techniques on managing life with migraine. -Kerrie

Hi Everyone – I’m honored to be helping to hold the fort here at the Daily Headache while Kerrie takes her much needed (and much deserved) break. Wishing you pain free days and nights. – Megan

Marijke has volunteered to keep The Daily Headache running while I’m on vacation. An RN turned writer, her excellent blog is called Help My Hurt. -Kerrie

From Marijke: Hi folks – I can’t even pretend to take Kerrie’s place here so I’m just minding the fort. If you have any questions, they will be forwarded to me or you can ask me directly at marijke (at) medhealthwriter (dot) com.

The last six (or 12 or 18…) have been tough. I’m physically and mentally exhausted from being sick, my dad being sick, and life’s general requirements. I’m taking a break. A two-month break to be exact. Hart has a sabbatical from work and we’ll be on vacation from now until mid-July. We both desperately need to get away and relax.

I couldn’t leave The Daily Headache in a lurch, of course. I’ve written and scheduled a lot of posts for the next couple months. Megan Oltman of Free My Brain From Migraine Pain and Marijke Durning from Help My Hurt have graciously volunteered to manage the blog while I’m away. Forum members Deborah and MJ will make sure everything runs smoothly there.

What’s that? You want to know where I’m going? A week in the South Pacific to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary is the first destination. On the way home, we’ll stop in Phoenix to visit family. We’ll spend June in Alaska. Our best friends will be here the first 10 days of July, then Hart’s sister and brother-in-law are coming for a week. It will be busy, but we’re good at doing nothing on vacation!

The neurologist I had such high hopes for lost all her shimmer in my follow-up appointment. The good news is I have no aneurysms, tumors or lesions and all my blood tests, except for one, came back fine. The bad news is the test results made me completely uninteresting to a neurologist who is primarily interested in autoimmune disorders.

Prolactin, Wikipedia and Google The one concern in my blood test was an elevated level of prolactin, a pituitary hormone. The neurologist thought one of my medications could be the cause, so she turned to Google to check. Nothing came up until she came across the Wikipedia page that said Reglan could increase prolactin. I trust Wikipedia for Joanie Loves Chaci trivia, not for medical information.

She did look for further confirmation. Google turned up a six-page article on prolactin and the results included something on Reglan. After looking through all six pages, the neurologist didn’t see a mention of Reglan. She said, "I can’t find it, but Google says it’s in here, so Reglan is probably the cause."

I actually agree, especially because I think the endocrinologist checked my prolactin levels in March. The neurologist and I also agreed that I should stop taking the drug and get another blood test in a month. She also mentioned that the endocrinologist should look for adrenal problems.

Lupus, Autoimmune Disorders and Fibromyalgia
Having hoped an autoimmune disorder was the reason I’m tired to the bone, I asked if fibromyalgia might be the cause. "Maybe, but we’re only looking at things we can do something about," was her response.

Cyproheptadine
Cyproheptadine is an old antihistamine that has been used to treat migraine. The neurologist said she used it when she first started practicing 25 years ago, then quickly moved on to other meds. Now she’s come full circle and finds it pretty effective.

Great, but I’m not taking a drug without knowing anything else about it. I asked "What are the…" before she cut me off with "…the side effects for cyproheptadine? Nothing. You may have a dry mouth in the morning, but that’s it." I know better than to believe a drug has only one side effect.

Researching the drug when I got home, and not relying on Wikipedia or Google search results for an answer, I discovered dry mouth is one of the biggest side effects. So are headaches and dizziness, my two main symptoms.

And, get this — cyproheptadine can affect pituitary-adrenal response lab results . I’m going off Reglan because it might affect pituitary lab results. I’m also supposed to have my endocrinologist check for pituitary and adrenal problems. But I’m prescribed a drug that can affect these very lab results?

Sinus Blockage
My left front sinus cavity has three pockets of fluid. It isn’t floating around, but walled off in lumps. I forgot to ask about treatment for that; she forgot to mention it. I guess an ENT is next?

Dismissal
I could feel her interest in me waning as the appointment went on. I became another migraine patient — one who is hard-to-treat at that. She’s willing to try the two best drugs in her arsenal (Topamax if cyproheptadine doesn’t work). She would probably continue to treat me if those drugs don’t work. I just don’t think she has any interest in doing so.

I’ve been fortunate with doctors. Other than one poorly regarded headache specialist, I have never felt this dismissed. It is like I started dating someone I thought would be a great match and was dumped with no explanation.

What’s Next
I’m discouraged. I hoped the lupus test would be positive. Not that I want to have lupus, but having a place to start would be nice.

I see the endocrinologist in June and will wait until that appointment before taking cyproheptadine. The drug might work and I want to try it. Just not at the expense of already questionable lab results. Then it is time to go through the list of -ologists I haven’t seen and make some appointments. I’ll also add an ENT to my list of doctors to check my sinuses.

I increased my magnesium to 200 mg last night. That is the only thing I’ve noticed a difference with, so I’m going to run with it. As long as I don’t get nauseated, I’m happy to push the dose. Still, I’m tired of treating myself.

I will probably go to an inpatient headache clinic this fall. Chronic daily headache patients often have excellent results at first, then return to the same levels of pain a few months later. A few months would be better than none at all.

I’ll get through this. I’ll look for more possibilities. I even believe I may find something soon. That doesn’t prevent the disappointment.